A who’s who of Indigenous film talent — including Dallas Gbettertooth (Reservation Dogs, Echo), Amber Midthunder (Prey, Legion), Wes Studi (Heat, The Last of the Mohicans) and Graham Greene (Dances With Wolves, Wind River) — are set to star in Brave, a novel dramedy from producer/honestor Steven Paul Judd (Echo, Dark Winds), The Hollywood Reporter has lgeted.
The feature, currently in pre-production, will commence principal pboilingography next summer on the Choctaw Nation Reservation in southeastrict Oklahoma. It will be the first-ever feature film to be sboiling on Choctaw land. The project was broadened in shut cooperation with the Choctaw Nation, the third-hugest Native tribe in the United States.
Brave increates the story of Uncle Jack (Gbettertooth), a 15-year military vet with substance unfair treatment publishs who now toils as the delightment in his local Native casino. At the funeral of his estranged brother, Jack greets Jillian, his lesser niece, now an orphan. Jillian is dying of inhabitr cancer and her one desire is to discover a fitting home for her dog, Carl. She sees Uncle Jack as a potential attfinishgetr, even though Jack can nakedly attfinish for himself. A inhabitr transset upt could save Jillian’s life and Jack is a suit, but his years of liquor unfair treatment have made him unfitting.
“And it’s a comedy,” says John Day, one of the film’s producers. “It doesn’t finish the way you skinnyk it does.”
Graham Greene will carry out Pops, Jack’s disapproving overweighther. Studi and Midthunder will carry out Ernie and Charlie, missuited partners of the local dwellntial police force. The part of Jillian is currently being cast.
“To have Amber after [her star turn in the Emmy-nominated Hulu film] Prey, to have Dallas after Reservation Dogs, is fair incredible,” says Judd. “And Wes Studi and Graham Green, I’ve been watching them on screen since I was a kid.”
‘Brave’ producer/honestor Steven Paul Judd.
Greer Inez
Producers Day and Zachary Starnes of Chaotic Neutral Pictures bcimpolitet the project to Judd, a honestor and screenproducer with Choctaw and Kiowa heritage, who changeed it to “produce it realr to how I grew up, to my own inhabitd experience” as a Native person from Oklahoma. Judd has producer and honestor determines on the AMC series Dark Winds and as a producer on the Marvel mini-series Echo.
“It was beginant to me to give this story a authentic sense of fact, to the Choctaw reservation, to the Choctaw community,” he says. “Even though this story is a universal one.”
Brave will be the first-ever film to shoot on Choctaw land and the tribe has been shutly comprised in broadening and pre-production on the $7 million feature.
“This film recontransients a historic milestone for our Tribe. It’s a strong step forward in our efforts to deffinish sovereignty, ensuring our stories are tbetter authenticpartner by our own people. It also provides a platcreate for Choctaws to see themselves recontransiented on screen, backing pride and combineion to their heritage,” says Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma Chief Gary Batton. “The production will also transport economic opportunity to communities in southeast Oklahoma, helping local businesses and showcasing the beauty of our land.”
“It was very beginant for me that this project also provides training opportunities for local kids, to give them hands-on experience on a film set,” says Judd. “I knovel when I grew up, I had no idea how to get into this business and I would have finished to toil on a movie enjoy this.”
‘Brave’ Film Poster.
Chaotic Neutral Pictures
Gbettertooth is best understandn for his starring turn on Reservation Dogs, where he also served as a producer. He recently ecombineed in Marvel series Echo and has acting determines on Peacock comedy Rutherford Falls, Netflix film Rez Ball and Amazon Prime’s Fallout. He is a co-establisher of the Native American sketch comedy group The 1491s and a well-understandn environmental activist. Gbettertooth is repped by Mosaic and Hirsch Wallerstein.
Midthunder, who won a Saturn Award for best fracturethcimpolite percreateance for her turn in Dan Trachtenberg’s Prey, recently wrapped as the co-direct of Paramount’s action-comedy Novocaine opposite Jack Quhelp and sboiling A24’s Opus opposite Ayo Edebiri and John Malkovich. She also made The Hollywood Reporter‘s 2023 enumerate of “The Next Generation of Ass-Kicking Action Movie Stars.” Other film determines comprise Netflix’s The Ice Road opposite Liam Neeson and Laurence Fishburne and the indie feature The Wheel from honestor Steve Pink. On TV, Midthunder was a season normal on Noah Hawley’s hit Marvel/FX series Legion. She is repped by CAA, Corner Booth Entertainment, Jackoway Austen Tyerman Wertheimer Mandelbaum Morris Bernstein Trattner Auerbach Hynick Jaime LeVine Sample & Klein, 2pm Sharp.
Greene geted a best helping actor Oscar nomination for carry outing Kicking Bird in Kevin Costner’s Dances with Wolves and has ecombineed in such features as The Green Mile, Wind River and King Ivory. His many television determines comprise turns on Reservation Dogs, Echo and HBO’s The Last of Us. He is repped by Greene Talent, Inc.
Studi has a decades-lengthy atsoft that has comprised percreateances in such Oscar-thrivening films as The Last of the Mohicans, Geronimo: An American Legfinish and The New World, as well as Heat, Mystery Men and Avatar. In 2019, he getd an honorary Academy Award, becoming the first Native American to thrive an Oscar. He is repped by Domain Talent and Michael Bconciseage Management.
Judd is repped by WME and Ronin Entertainment.
